1994 850 antenna issue

lougars · Post by **lougars** » 01 Mar 2017, 17:10

My mast is stuck up and will not go down, if this is a bad motor how can I verify that? or perhaps just the mast.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 01 Mar 2017, 18:31

You can usually tell if it is a mast or the motor by listening for the motor working with your head in the trunk while someone turns the radio on and off inside of the car. If you can hear the motor but the antenna doesn't extend or retract then most of the time the spine gear on the mast has broken off.

...Lee

Post by **scot850** » 01 Mar 2017, 23:19

It can also be the mast has seized and the motor cannot move it. Sometimes just replacing the mast portion can resurrect a bad antenna. You can get a cheap mast for $10-15 or so from FCP and other suppliers from brands like MTC. I used one on an 850 project about 6 months ago and worked fine. Biggest problem with the antennas is people don't maintain them by cleaning the masts every couple of weeks with a wipe down of something like WD-40 on a rag.

Neil.